Playoff!!?? Yes, it’s that time of year where fantasy footballers
either start their first week of playoffs or make a final push to get into the
postseason. Nobody wants to be that fantasy franchise that is sitting on
the outside, looking in come playoff time. In these next few weeks, the lineup
decisions you will make on your team will be critical to your success and could
be the big difference in you taking home the hardware or planning for next year.
Let’s take a look at a couple players that could be in store for a good three
week stretch during the fantasy football playoffs.
While Rex Grossman’s recent struggles have been well documented, he could
have a real chance at turning things around during the last three weeks of the
season. The Bears and Grossman will face the Rams, Buccaneers, Lions and
Packers in the last four weeks of the NFL season. Out of those four teams,
only the Rams possess a fantasy pass defense that will be a challenge for
Grossman, as they currently rank as the 9th best fantasy pass defense in the
NFL. All other opponents rank no higher than 27th in our rankings and have
given up a combined total of 65 passing TDs on the season!
The Vikings have been plodding along all season in mediocrity, but fantasy
owners have to be pleased with the production of Chester Taylor as the teams
feature running back. Taylor
is currently the 5th leading rusher in the NFL and backing up our preseason
predictions of him being a top ten fantasy running back. He could have a
significant chance of greatly improving his stats in the last 4 weeks of the
season, if he can fight through a nagging rib injury.
Taylor
will face the Lions, Jets, Packer and Rams in the last four weeks of the NFL
season. None of those teams rank in the top half of the league when it
comes to stopping the run from a fantasy perspective, so
Taylor
has a real chance at making a big impact down the stretch.
Here are a few players that you might want to take a look at plugging into
your starting lineup this week to either turn around your luck or keep your
success going! They may not be the top names in fantasy football, but most are
the ‘in between’ guys that you might have to make a tough decision on. The
good fantasy owner is able to pick these players out from a crowd and stick them
in their lineup for fantasy success!
QB – Vince Young – The rookie QB from Texas has been on a roll lately, scoring 5
touchdowns, rushing and receiving over the past 2 weeks while rushing for 147
yards. We think that roll will continue this week as he will be heading
into Houston
to play in front of his hometown crowd that lobbied hard for the Texans brass to
draft him earlier this year. Young should have some extra motivation in
this game because of this, but the fact that Texans give up nearly 228 yards
passing a game and 17 passing TDs on the season shouldn’t hurt things!
RB – Rudi Johnson – Rudi has been on a little bit of a slide lately, rushing
for 100 yards only once in the last 6 games. We think you will see
his production spike this week since he will going up against the Raiders
defense, at home. The Raiders are near the bottom of the league in rushing
defense, giving up nearly 133 yards per game on the ground to go along with 9
rushing TDs. The Raiders do excel at pass defense, so look for the Bengals
to attack the Raiders weakness, which is their porous rushing defense.
RB – Brian Westbrook – Westbrook has been a very steady fantasy running back
this season, despite starting the season with a bothersome foot injury.
His combination of rushing and receiving skill has made him the 3rd best running
back in fantasy football , as of week 13. He should be able to continue
that success this week as the Eagles will face the Redskins, who rank 25th in
overall fantasy defense, giving up over 351 yards per game and a total of 28
TDs. Look for Westbrook to attack the Skins defense on the ground and
through the air.
WR – Darrell Jackson – Jackson
is currently leading all NFL wide receivers with nine TD receptions on the
season. Despite the addition of Deion Branch and Nate Burleson in the
offseason, Jackson
has continued to be Matt Hasselbecks favorite target in the redzone.
Jackson and the Seahawks will be going up against a Cardinals defense this week
that has it’s issues when it comes to defending the pass, ranking 25th in
fantasy pass defense. The Cardinals give up over 234 yards passing per
game, to go along with 14 TDs on the season. We see this game as an
opportunity for the Seahawks offense to get back on track and we expect Jackson to be a big part of it.
WR – Donte Stallworth – Stallworth has been and up and down fantasy
performer. When he is healthy, he is up. When he isn’t, he’s a
non-factor. Stallworth had a superb game last week vs. the Panthers,
catching 4 balls for 111 yards and a TD. His hamstrings seem to be OK for
week 14 and he’s going up against a Redskins defense that is the 30th ranked
passing defense in the league, giving up a league-high 23 TDs on the season.
Expect new starting QB, Jeff Garcia, to look Stallworth’s way often after their
success together last Monday night.
TE – Alge Crumpler – Cumpler is always one of the top tight ends in fantasy
football, since he is Michael Vick’s favorite and most reliable target.
The Falcons and Crumpler will be facing the Buccaneers defense this week, which
are the owner of the 31st ranked fantasy pass defense in the league. The
Bucs are tied for the league lead in passing touchdowns allowed with 23 and have
only intercepted 6 passes on the season. We see Vick having a bigger passing
game this week, with Crumpler being the main focus of his efforts through the
air.
DEF – Tennessee
– The Titans haven’t been the model of a fantasy defense for most of the season
in 2006, but have been inspired the last couple weeks by the play of the
offense. They will be going against a Texans offense this week that is the
28th ranked fantasy offense in the league, scoring only 22 TDs on the season.
They will also be facing a struggling QB in David Carr who has thrown only 1
touchdown to go along with 3 interceptions in the last SIX weeks! Look for
the Titans to bottle up Carr and force him into a few sacks and interceptions.